Coachella, the music festival that has gone viral every year for the past decade, may have just entered its flop era as tickets to the two-weekend event experienced a decline in demand this year. According to SFGate, the festival hasn't seen ticket sales this slow since 10 years ago.
The California-based music festival, which this year features artists such as Doja Cat, Ice Spice, Tyler, the Creator and Lana Del Ray, is famous for selling out tickets within minutes, hours, or at the maximum, a few days. Coachella tickets run for $499 to $599 for general admission and $1,069 to $1,269 for VIP.
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In 2022, Coachella, which features two weekends of performances, sold out both weekends within four hours. In 2023, the first weekend sold out in just four days, while the second weekend never sold out.
For this year in particular, after tickets for Coachella went on sale on Jan. 19, it took almost a month for tickets to sell out for its first weekend of shows which took place through April 12-14. Tickets for Coachella’s second weekend of shows, which will happen April 19-21, are still available to purchase.
Some people have been pointing fingers toward social media influencers for ruining Coachella amid reports of slow ticket sales.
here is my opinion on coachella last night
— Graham Coxon Posting (@grhamcoxn) April 14, 2024
what the actual fuck. it was so horrible. the crowd was so horrible. im convinced that coachella is just a breeding ground for wannabe influencers who just show up at the event to take pictures so that they can maybe get a couple likes-
coachella is such a mid festival because of the place & crowd filled with wannabes and influencers like all these live sets with dead audiences
— Witness | KP6 IS COMING (@factsaboutkaty) April 15, 2024
unpopular (or maybe popular idk) opinion
— ×͜× H•☆•𓊍 💧🤍☕️👁️👽 (@tommo28sun) April 15, 2024
i think coachella should ban influencers from going and only allow people who actually give a fuck about the music that’s being played and the artists yk its a music festival not a pr show
The criticism against influencers is part of a recent trend called “influencer fatigue” where consumers, who are looking for more authenticity and relatability in the content they see on social media, have expressed annoyance with overconsumption, lavishness and other cliché content associated with influencers.
Inflation is also being blamed for the decline in demand for Coachella tickets. The U.S. inflation rate last month reached 3.48%, which is an increase from the 3.15% that was reported the month before, according to data from YCharts.
Ticket prices for Coachella aren’t immune to inflation as prices for general admission passes have increased by $50 since 2022. In 2022, general admission passes cost $449, and now this year, they cost $499.
Coachella is overpriced, so are rentals, people have less disposable due to ATH inflation. Count thousand dollar leisure activities out for the majority of people that attend such things. They never had money to begin with. Credit is debt when the fun is all over.
— Mercenary King (@DanielK42537934) April 3, 2024
Well considering that inflation is the highest it’s ever been in America this isn’t really a fair comparison. 1 gallon of milk costs like $10 right now so of course a majority of people won’t be fighting over Coachella tickets in this economy. https://t.co/1XxUNVbLsN
— #CHELLATEEZ (@MINGISDOLL) January 25, 2024
Wages are stagnant, everyone is sick, there’s no healthcare, no paid leave, corps have jacked up prices on everything and called it “inflation” … like duh. Coachella money is being used for grocery money. https://t.co/gHFlEWy8x9
— Erik :: they/them (@thecardsharp2) January 25, 2024
The average resale price for Coachella tickets have also increased despite slower-than-usual ticket sales. Tickets for the upcoming second weekend of Coachella this year reached an average resale ticket price of $998 four days prior to the start of the event, according to data from SeatGeek that was shared with TheStreet. This is a stark increase for the average resale price of the second weekend of Coachella in 2023 which was $752. In 2022, it was $665.
An increase of competition from other music festivals that are taking place this year with more competitive line-ups of performances may also be posing as a headwind for Coachella ticket sales.
The Lovers & Friends festival in Las Vegas, which is set to take place on May 4 this year, sold out within an hour after tickets first went on sale. The music festival has a line-up that features artists such as Janet Jackson, Usher, Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dogg, Backstreet Boys, etc. The festival’s tickets also started at around $325 for general admission and $695 for VIP.
BottleRock Napa Valley, which starts on May 24 and lasts until May 26, has a line-up that features artists such as Megan Thee Stallion, Ed Sheeran, Pearl Jam and Nelly. It already sold out its three-day tickets and one-day VIP tickets. The only tickets available for purchase are its one-day general admission passes which start at $233.
Lollapalooza is set to take place on Aug. 1-4 this year, and the artists that are set to perform at the festival include SZA, Blink-182, Skrillex and Future. The festival has already sold out its 4-day general admission tickets and have prices as low as $149.
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